(CC BY-ND) Photos credits — Marion Plisson

Oh, how we educate our children… There is so much at stake and we, parents, start with no experience in parenting. We learn on the job and do our best, as every parent.

We start with no experience in being a parent but we should not forget that we have experienced the parenting of our parents toward us. That gave us a model that consciously and unconsciously format us to educate our children in a certain way. Some of us seem to have had the perfect parents but for a lot of us, not everything was flawless. It’s up to us to learn from the mistakes of our parents to avoid repeating them and transmitting them to our children.

It’s a long path, it’s difficult, it requires a sincere look back and reflexion on ourselves but it’s really worth it!

Our children teach us a lot along the way, if we listen to them carefully. When I’m attentive to what they tell and express in many ways, I can see they’re teaching me how to know them and help them grow.

So I have to remind myself to avoid the mistakes and wrong ways from my childhood, to listen, listen, understand then choose the path I feel is the right one for my child. And each child is different, so I should not expect that what worked for my eldest daughter will work for the youngest one!

Then, when things go well, or not so bad, the rewards and the benefits of raising happy children flourish. More laughters, more fun, more serenity, complicity, positivity, pride.